The Silence of Gray Fullbuster and Juvia Lockser
by midnightwritten
Summary: Their minds are loud. Eating large parts of their mind. Taking some of their sanity away. The girl had social issues. The boy is taking anger management therapies. While she fixes his past for their present, He mends her present for their future.
1. Chapter One

Juvia likes to think when she walks anywhere. She likes to think whether it will be okay if she does her hair this way, or that way, whatever way she wants for the day. Sometimes she thinks of Gray Fullbuster, the broody boy sitting at the corner, always admiring the cherry blossoms at the window.

Sometimes she thinks about whether the society will accept her the way she is, all alone, friendless, and not quite a talker. Sometimes she just wishes she can stay home and help her stepbrother Gajeel at his locksmith shop.

Juvia is not a social person. She is a closed type of girl, the kind that doesn't go to parties, that doesn't date anyone, that never interacts with even the teachers, even though she is newly recognised as one of the top students at her new school. She's just socially awkward.

And adding to that, the rain. The beautiful but horrible rain that has been doing numerous wonderful things to her life, to which sometimes she regrets. Like how her supposed-ex-boyfriend is supposed to help her when he then joins the bullies. She's forgiving, she's able to smile, but she gets hurt inside every time.

No one knows that the quiet Juvia has a loud mind.

"Hey."

Her thoughts stop there just like that as she lifts her head and comes face to face with someone she never expects to see around her.

"Are you okay?" He asks her, eyebrows knitted. "You look terrible."

There are his friends waiting for him at the front. Natsu Dragneel, and his girlfriend Lucy Heartfilia. They're waving at her and she smiles helplessly back.

Natsu and Lucy jog towards her and smile kindly. "We noticed that you were walking alone, so we thought that you'd like someone to talk to," Lucy starts, her eyes watching Gray. "Of _course_, Gray here noticed you first, and we kinda need to rush, so we'll walk ahead of you." She gives a rushed goodbye and drags a protesting Natsu down the pavement.

Gray looks over his shoulder as the pair disappears down the road, before he shifts his attention back to Juvia. Juvia shyly looks down to her feet and begins walking, Gray silently walking beside her. Juvia eyes the broody boy carefully - secretly - and notices features she hasn't seen before.

His skin is fair, like porcelain, and she can't help it but to notice the six pack quite showing on his shirt. He has a few grey hairs like herself, and she finds his dark eyes resembles the night sky. She finds them intoxicating. When Gray looks at her questioningly, she shakes her head and looks back down to her shoes.

And now she wonders whether he is wondering about her too.

Gray finds it hard to concentrate during recess, when he notices that a certain blue-haired girl is sitting alone at a table in the corner, surrounded by some bimbos of the school that Gray finds he has horribly disapproved of as schoolgirls. He has been watching her being tortured for the past five minutes.

He'll not be just an observer and let it happen for the rest of the year. Heck, even for the rest of her life.

"Hey, dude, calm it down."

"I'm calm, Dragneel."

"You're not. You're having your fists balled and your veins are popping any second."

"Do I look like I care?"

"Gray, your temper therapies--"

"I'm _fine_, Lucy."

"Don't go crashing someone's head--"

"I know, I know."

But the next thing he knows, he's looking into her blue eyes, pleading him silently to stop, when he slams each of the girls' face into the table. That's when he comes into reality and sinks to the corner, embraced by none other than the girl who's being bullied.


	2. Chapter Two (05-29 20:25:14)

Gray goes home for that day, after an hour of counselling that he received from the school counsellor. He expects that, to be honest. What he least expects is that after the dreaded hour, he comes out to see Juvia, sitting patiently on the waiting bench outside the room.

"Juvia."

"Gray." She stands up and smiles at him.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm waiting for you." She smiles again. "You're here because of me." Her voice wavers. "I'm sorry."

"It's _not _because of you, Juvia," he says quietly, picking up his bag that has been abandoned since morning. Juvia observes him as he breathes in a shaky breath before he sits down and covers his face with his hands.

"I was trying to save you." He whimpers, and Juvia can't help but to notice tears coming out through the small gaps of his fingers. Juvia slowly kneels down and pries his hands away from his face, looking into his eyes that seem so sad and hollow.

"Gray?"

He looks into her eyes.

"Let's go home."

#

She can't sleep that night.

His horrible, lifeless eyes haunt her dreams too much. She sits up and sighs before she gets up from her bed and walks down the stairs to the kitchen.

"You're awake?" A deep voice rumbles from the living room. Juvia takes out two glasses from the glass holder and walks to the living room to find her stepbrother on the couch, eyes on the screen of the TV.

"I can't sleep." She confesses.

"Great. So am I."

"Can I just watch tv with you, big bro?"

"Sure you can," he smiles, and scoots further to the other side to give her space.

Juvia sits down beside her brother.

About ten minutes later, Gajeel hears her calm snores. He gently puts her over his broad shoulder and carries her to bed.

#

Gray can't sleep. Well that's an understatement; he never sleeps. It's either he's having nightmares, or he tosses and turns in his sleep, or he's just staring at the ceiling for the night. He gets eye bags and he knows it.

Tonight though, he feels a sudden change in his sleep pattern. At 1 am, he is actually _yawning, _when he's doing schoolwork, and he's actually feeling drowsy. He actually bids his father goodnight, and he actually walks to his room to read a story and remember Juvia's face before he goes to sleep.

He has a wonderful sleep. A sleep where he conjures no dreams. He just dreams of himself sleeping on a thick pad of grass. Just sleeping.

Gray wakes up the next morning, fresh and unwasted.


	3. Chapter Three (06-01 09:39:24)

If there is anything that Juvia likes to do than most of her favourite hobbies, it's watching Gray Fullbuster that she enjoys the most. Call her a stalker, but it's nowhere near stalking at all. It's like, whenever he happens to be around her at the time.

She likes the idea of her and Gray cuddling, watching movies, short videos about animals (she discovered her infatuation with animals a while ago), or just cuddling under the night sky, talking about stars. She just likes the idea of it.

She likes the idea of a happy Gray, and as the days go by, she gets curiouser about the mysterious boy she enjoys watching.

#

Gray has an aunt, going by the name of Erza. She's more suitable to be his sister, though, because they are only three years apart. She has red hair that goes like the shade of steely blood, and she has a rare smile that must have been passed to Gray. He inherits the rare smiles.

Gray is now sitting at his table, and noticing that Juvia, although no longer being bullied, now sits alone at her table, staring at the food she just got from the cafeteria a few minutes ago.

"Is that Juvia?" Lucy enquires, staring at the blue-haired girl sitting not far from them. "Is she waiting for someone?"

"She always eats alone," Gray answers quietly, his eyes not leaving Juvia.

"Why didn't any of us ask her to join us?"

"I think it's because you and Natsu are always arguing about how much Natsu eats per week."

"Hey!"

"Anyways, Gray, you go and ask her to sit with us."

"Why me?"

"Don't you like her?"

"Why are you asking that question?"

"Why aren't you answering my question?"

"Oh, come on, Lucy!"

"You talked to her a few times!"

"So did you and Natsu."

"Are we going to fight about this here?"

"Say, Gray, Luce, I think both of you can shut up, because I'll be getting Juvia outta here." Natsu yells from somewhere - turning out to be Juvia's table. Juvia looks up at the salmon-haired boy in surprise when he suddenly picks up her food tray and grins at her.

"C'mon, Juvia! Sit with us."

Juvia hesitantly stands up, and looks around her to see if anybody is watching her, but no one is watching her, so she briskly follows Natsu to their table and sits down, with a quick thank you.

"Hey, Juvia!" Lucy greets her. She looks at Lucy and immediately she feels her confident self dropping. She's talking to an angel, and she feels like crying. An angel this kind must exist only in heaven!

"Come on, just eat, don't pay attention to me."

Juvia eats. She can't concentrate though, with three pairs of eyes watching her with interest. _Especially _the darkest ones, that she has dreamed of several times.

"Can I just ... eat, without you all watching me?" Juvia smiles nervously at Lucy.

The three of them quickly busy themselves with their food again.

#

Gray finds his mind being occupied by a certain blue-haired girl while he studies for a test that night.


	4. Chapter Four

Does anyone know how it feels like to sink into some kind of deep water - preferably the ocean - and wish that you'll get lost forever there? Like, you wish there's nothing that can pick you up from there, because the water hypnotised you. You're comfortable being just there.

Juvia thinks like this whenever she looks into Gray's dark eyes. Her version of sinking is way more beautiful, because when she looks into his eyes, she feels like she's floating on air. Like the wind carries her gently, cradling her like a baby, with soft gestures. She can float and see the stars, count them, fly amongst them.

To say that she's hypnotised is an understatement.

She's enchanted.

#

She thinks she will be scared if she sees his eyes so dark with anger. She thinks so, before she sees them with her own eyes.

They're dangerous. Beutifully chaotic. Ironically shining. Devilishly brutal. His eyes are dark with anger as he attempts to punch the blonde boy in front of him. 'He's something else,' she thinks. Erza and Lyon, his stepbrother, is holding him tightly by the arms.

"It's like he's possessed." She hears a girl whisper to her. She says nothing, though, afraid that it can be true. But it can't be true; demons aren't something mere humans can control. Possessed. By demons, no. By anger,

Yes.

She makes her mind to call for Gray.

"Gray."

He doesn't stop.

"Gray." He yells loudly, and his head snaps.

"Gray?" His eyes snap open, and his head lifts itself. His dark, tired eyes meet her blue eyes. All of sudden, Erza and Lyon let his arms go, and he freakishly lands on the floor, totally drained, puffing in the remaining air he has.

Everyone looks at Juvia. Everyone is whispering about her. How she can suddenly cure him without even trying. How he only listens to her. Everyone leaves them alone. She kneels in front of Gray slowly and lifts him up, supporting him by the shoulder.

He peers into her eyes, concentrating hard on them, to indulge himself in her, to sink himself and get lost in her eyes. Just to run away from himself.

"Juvia." He whispers quietly, as they come nearer towards the infirmary. She listens quietly as he breathes.

"I'm so tired." He whispers, and looks into her eyes. She smiles and bends down to kiss his forehead.

"Then rest," she whispers back.

He falls asleep with her in in his arms, a ghost of a smile playing on their lips.


	5. Chapter Five

Juvia sits quietly at Natsu's table during recess. Natsu is quiet, Lucy isn't in any mood, and Gray isn't in the mood either. Gray's face is quite pale, and Juvia can see strange scratching marks on his shoulders. She's not going to ask, though, because she's also not in the mood.

She glances into his broody eyes and notices something oddly different about them. Although his eyes are stil dark in colour, his eyes hold a different hue. A shade she's never seen in his eyes before, even when he's attempting punches to the boy the previous day.

They hold a reddish hue.

#

"I was not the one throwing punches the other day at the boy." Gray suddenly speaks after Natsu and Lucy take leave. Juvia stares at him, a little confused about what he declared. "It's true."

"So who was the one throwing punches if it wasn't you, Gray?"

"It was something in me."

"What?" Juvia's eyes widen.

"I don't know what it is, but I know I got it by accident."

"How do you _get _something by accident?" She asks, confused.

"I liked playing in the woods when I was little. My dad and my mum never cared much wherever I wanted to play, as long as it's safe. Safe to them meant near our house - the woods. And basically, that's where it found me."

"It found you."

"I told you, it came to me."

"And you let it in?"

"I don't know." Gray starts to sit into his seat, too tired to think. "I never wanted it. My bad temper turned worse after it came." Gray sighs as he places his food aside, not ready to eat. Juvia is taking in all the new information she got.

"Why are you telling me, and not Natsu and Lucy?"

"Because I know that you'd believe me. No matter the circuimstances."

He's right. She does believe him. Even though it doesn't make any sense st all.

#

Juvia remembers staring into his eyes to see the red hue that had took over the dark grey colour. What has happened to those lovely eyes that she loves so much? Juvia just wants to see Gray's eyes when they're happy, and she knows she's seen it in some few rare times.

She realises that she wants to help her beloved. She needs to. To avoid the bad things from happening again.

#

"Gray seems odd." Lucy speaks out, one afternoon, when she and Juvia are alone. Juvia doesn't say a thing and keeps quiet, unable to say anything. To tell Lucy will make herself guilty, because she promised Gray that she wouldn't tell anyone.

To not tell her best friend, who is also one of the smartest people she knows, is also a great faux, because Lucy must know something that can be helpful to stop Gray's curse. But Gray will never let anything harm his friends.

"You seem to know something, Juvia."

_I do. "_Maybe."

"Did he tell you anything?"

_Yes. _"No."

"Okay," Lucy smiles sweetly, "let's just hope Gray gets better next week."

"Yes." Juvia smiles back.

#

When Juvia gets home, she receives a text message from Gray.

"Can I call you?"

"_Sure, why not?" _

A call enters her phone, an unknown number. When she answers it, Juvia is greeted by a familiar voice. "Can I come over?" He asks in a raspy voice.

"Gray? What's wrong?" She asks, alarmed.

"Nothing, nothing."

The phone line is forcefully disconnected a minute later when Juvia hears Gray's shouts and an older man's laughter interrupting her call, sending chills down her spine.

Gray called the man 'dad'.

Despite her spooks, Juvia gathers her courage and strength and runs off to the Fullbusters to check on Gray.

The night is pitch black. No stars.


	6. Chapter Six

"Gray! Gray!"

She runs and runs, not caring if she stepped on glass or thorny wood. She keeps screaming for Gray. She notices the pitch black sky, and hears something that seems to roar into the sky. Her thoughts are disturbed when she's thrown back by someone who bumped into her.

"Juvia!" The person shouts.

Juvia blinks her eyes and is shocked to see Gray, pale and with glowing eyes. He seems scared when he sees Juvia, but what's more evident in his eyes is relief. He starts to cry. Juvia is shocked to see him cry - twice - in front of her, and he doesn't even seem to mind.

"Gray?"

He cries harder.

"Come here."

He doesn't come. She crawls to him.

"What's wrong?" She lifts his face up and looks into his eyes. "Please, tell me, darling, so I can help you." She pleas. Gray stays silent and holds her hand. His tears are dry and he's calm, but his sniffs are still there.

"Tell me, dear."

"That demon." He finally whispers, hugging her close. "He went to my dad. I can't find my dad anywhere."

Juvia quickly grabs her phone and dials 911.

#

Juvia brings Gray to her house, where he is welcomed by Juvia's shocked stepbrother, Gajeel, who's texting his fiancée, Levy McGarden - one of Juvia's best friends.

"Fullbuster? What's he doing here?"

Juvia looks between Gajeel and Gray, who looks to her with a silent plea. Juvia looks at Gajeel, and she hesitantly tells Gajeel, "He needs help, Gajeel."

Gajeel looks at Gray grudgingly before he approves with a scowl.

#

"Why don't you want my brother to help us?"

"There's a reason in everything, Lockser."

"Why, though?"

Gray sighs and looks away, as Juvia wonders about her own question.

#

Juvia stays up all night contacting police officers around her area to check out for Silver Fullbuster, while Gray, too exhausted to talk, falls asleep on her lap when she was telling him a bedtime story that he claimed to be his favourite.

At exactly 5.00 am, Juvia feels the silent stirring Gray makes on her lap and she realises he's awake.

"Good morning, Gray." She yawns, her eyes red. "How is your sleep?"

"Like a baby." Gray is now sitting up, looking into her eyes. "Did ya stay up all night, Juvia?" He has an apologetic look on his face. Juvia smiles and lays his head on her lap again. Gray turns his face to her stomach so that she will not see the dark red blush that crept up to his face.

Juvia leans her back against the back of her couch and minutes later, the two teenagers are captured by sleep.

#

Gray wakes up a few hours later, to see Juvia, her face pale, and the black marks around her eyes getting more evident as he squints his eyes more. She's still asleep, and she has a notebook and a pen in one hand, and under her other hand that's hugging his head, is her abandoned phone. She's mumbling details of Gray's father in her sleep, making his heart swell a bit.

Gray quietly sits up and tidies her mess, before he carries her in his arms. Passing by Gajeel, who understands the situation and points out Juvia's room for him, he carefully climbs up the staircase and finds the blue door at the top of the staircase.

Gray quietly opens the the door which reveals a neat, seemingly unused blue bedroom. Not quite used to the details, which majorly consists of his favourite colours - grey and blue - he puts her gently on the bed, as she stirs in her sleep, mumbling Gray's name and his father's details.

Gray finds a chair and sits by her bed, kisses her cheeks and mumbling a goodnight to her before he drifts back to sleep.


	7. Chapter Seven

Gray wakes up again for the umpteenth time for the day to Juvia's tossing and turning and her mumbling his name in his sleep. The weird thing is that it's like she's pleading - begging - someone. Gray gently nudges Juvia, but she still won't wake.

When she suddenly opens her eyes and her body jolts upwards, she looks around for Gray - who just got back from making Juvia breakfast - and suddenly wraps her arms around him, shaking uncontrollably.

"Juvia, is everything okay?" Gray whispers, holding her hands, and looks into her eyes. She shivers and doesn't say anything.

"Juvia?"

"I... I had a ... dream."

Gray holds Juvia's face gently and touches his forehead with hers, concentrating on every word she speaks to him.

"That dream is just pure _evil_, and that demon just won't let you go! I was so scared and I accidentally--", and suddenly, she tears up, unable to say anything. Gray shushes her down and calms her by rubbing his thumbs against her cheeks. She continues sobbing uncontrollably.

"Juvia?" He calls her name gently. She looks into his eyes and smiles painfully, before closing them back.

"The demon told me to kill you."

#

There are a lot of things they have to discuss, and right there and then, Gray doesn't want to discuss it so suddenly. He thinks it might freak her off. He just sits there, touching his forehead with hers, calming her tears down, whispering that everything is going to be okay.

"Gray?" She whispers, and he hears a yawn coming out of it.

"I want to sleep." She looks into his eyes again and smiles. That beautiful smile, goddamn it, Gray thinks to himself as he kisses her forehead and whispers a goodnight in her ear before he begins his side of the research. The discussion can start in the morning, when she's more ready and secure to talk.

That night, Gray is accompanied by Juvia's soft snores ringing in his ears, and with her steady heartbeat against his fast racing one.

#

_The Black Cult_

_It is said that the city was once a sacred temple that the locals used to trap an evil demon that had been released by the Black Cult, whose leader was known as Zeref. His magic was known to be dangerous, but his wife's magic was the total opposite._

_Mavis was a giver of life, while Zeref brings death. Although impeccably unrelatable, Zeref finds his wife as the most precious thing. It was a mystery on how Mavis lived with his strange deadly power, and was also able to give birth to their first son, August._

_The Black Wizard was known for his Black Cult activities, rumoured to return the life to his deceased brother, Natsu. It was said that he wasn't responsible for the Demons of the Underworld to rise to the upper grounds, but no one really knew the truth. _

_Zeref quitted his cult and was dedicated in raising his little family, though his whereabouts were unknown to public._

_His birthdate and birthplace were unknown._

#

"Gray?"

Gray glances down and sees Juvia's eyes directed to him, her lips curved upwards. "It's seven. Do you want something?"

Gray stares at her, uncertain. He wonders if his dad going missing is a true event, or if him having Juvia in his room is happening at all. What if this was just a mistake that he made? What if, this girl just pities him, and tries to help him get out of his hole?

There are a lot of what-ifs going in his mind, but the scariest part was him thinking that, _what if_, he was never alive at all? What if this was his father's memories, and that in his youth, Silver had met Juvia? What if _they _get married? What if Juvia loved _Silver_, and not _him_? What if —

"Gray."

Gray realises that Juvia is gently caressing his face, brushing away the tears that fell down his cheeks and had dropped to her face. "I'm sorry, if I was troubling you, Gray," she says sadly, "I never meant to do that." "You are never a trouble." Gray whispers to her — more like to himself.

"Dad," he mumbles to himself in a way a schoolboy would do to confess his wrongdoings, "I know you'll be okay. I'm coming to get ya."

#

Somewhere, Silver wakes up.

Bound by icy ropes.


End file.
